# Star Flops and Slowing Investment Help Explain China’s Thin Festival Presence, Says Tokyo Programming Director

- URL: https://talkfuse.com/story/star-flops-and-slowing-investment-help-explain-chinas-thin-festival-presence-says-tokyo-programming-director/
- Published: 2026-10-26T07:00:42+00:00
- Updated: 2026-10-26T07:10:48+00:00
- Original publisher: Variety
- Original article: https://variety.com/2026/film/festivals/star-flops-dent-china-festival-presence-tokyo-ichiyama-shozo-1236930989/
- Topics: Asia, Celebrity, Entertainment, Film, World

## Key points

- Chinese cinema’s festival profile has weakened amid industry pressures.
- Star-led box-office flops and slower investment are factors.
- Tokyo is seeking more support for emerging filmmakers.

## Summary

Tokyo International Film Festival programming director Ichiyama Shozo says Chinese films have had a reduced presence at international festivals this year amid box-office failures for star-led films, slower investment and a reportedly more complex censorship process. He says these pressures have left some films unreleased and reflect a sharp change from the mid-2000s, when China’s booming cinema market enabled even independent productions to secure reasonable budgets.

Ichiyama describes Taiwan’s film industry as comparatively steady, supported by public funding despite its small home market. Tokyo’s Competition features 15 films, aims for about half to come from Asia and prioritises emerging directors; this year’s selection also includes films looking back at historical events, which Ichiyama connects to a wider trend of examining a more divided world. He says Japanese cinema is healthy overall, but young, low-budget filmmakers still need more support, and Tokyo is expanding training and production initiatives.

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Summarised by TalkFuse (https://talkfuse.com/). Quote the original publisher for the reporting and link this page for the summary and discussion.